Dragon Age: Origins - Gen. Discussion & Info

I need to fix my Alistar tactics. He gets owned every single time I have a big fight. The guy is nothing more than a bully in this game. Guy always falls in a big fight for me. Half the time that happens it lleads to the rest of the party getting wiped out. It's like dominos when 1 person dies.
 
[quote name='ViolentLee']^^ Thanks for the advice. I already have been playing on Normal. I'd feel like such a weenie on Casual.
I looked on the official Dragon Age forum, and several other people have had similar problems.

It's just so weird to be going along at a good clip and then all of a sudden getting your ass kicked even though you didn't really change anything.[/QUOTE]

Not to be snarky, but...how often do you play rpgs?

If you didn't know that the guy wouldn't attack on defensive I'm guessing this isn't a genre you play ever day, because that's a common setting - don't attack unless you're attacked. I'd put it on easy and read some faqs until you get the hang of it. It'll make the entire experience more enjoyable.

^that wasn't snarky, I promise
 
8h into the game and it's getting better.

Just need one clarification though if anyone can help:

I've done a couple of quests in Lothering after the first major development. THen I decided to go to Redcliff and save the Arl by defeating the abomination. Yet when that was completed and I left for Denerim, it says on the world map that Lothering was wipdeout by the Darkspawn!!!

Will this happen every time I complete a quest? Is there a particular timer/requirements for that?
 
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[quote name='kamui34']8h into the game and it's getting better.

Just need one clarification though if anyone can help:

I've done a couple of quests in Lothering after the first major development. THen I decided to go to Redcliff and save the Arl by defeating the abomination. Yet when that was completed and I left for Denerim, it says on the world map that Lothering was wipdeout by the Darkspawn!!!

Will this happen every time I complete a quest? Is there a particular timer/requirements for that?
[/QUOTE]

Area is always wiped out after you leave it no matter what.
 
[quote name='perdition(troy']is it worth it to get the guide? (i like collecting them aswell)[/QUOTE]

I definitely think it is worth getting the guide. I bought the guide a few days after playing for awhile. I am no rpg newbie but after i picked up the guide i found out a missed quite a few things. I like to try to do things perfectly and completely. I ended up making a new character and doing it over. The maps are really useful is your the kind of gamer that's strapped for time but you like rpgs. It helps you get around to your npcs faster and you can accomplish more in less time.
 
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[quote name='chubbyninja1319']Anyone order from EA and still not get the game? My order still says 'in process' and the order was placed on 11/1. Plus, they don't respond to inquiries sent via email.

I ended up buying the regular ed. at Toys R Us yesterday....but still, where is my CE? I'm very annoyed at this point.[/QUOTE]

I originally ordered my CE from them. My order still says "in process" since October 30th. The authorization hold they had for the funds on my bank account has been released meaning they didn't get to take my money. I've emailed them several times and called them several times in which they told me they could not cancel my order once it entered the "in process" phase. I explained to them that it said that the day I placed my order. I never received my game and never got any help and my bank told me to keep an eye on my account and that if they try to charge for the funds they will stop the payment. The guy I spoke to from EA on the phone was a complete moron and till this day my order still says "in process" and I keep telling them to just cancel it that I give no permission for them to resubmit funds authorization and that I already purchased the CE elsewhere. There is plenty of EA Store horror stories specifically about purchasing Dragon Age on their website forums. Not to mention you have to find their customer support number listed on other websites that people were kind enough to relay the message because there is several phone numbers for EA and none are listed anywhere convenient enough to find. If you look in the EA forums I'm sure you can find a thread posted by "Myalia" which is me.

So if you still have not gotten your game I suggest you email/call them and get a refund if you have been charge. Or just refuse the shipment when it arrives and then they will be able to refund your money.

BTW whoever is still looking for CE of dragon age, I found mine on J & R Music World website and I ordered it online and got overnight shipping (expensive) But they had CE in stock. Not sure if they still do but it's worth checking out.
 
[quote name='ChernobylCow']Bioware has had "AI templates" since Baldur's Gate 1. I think if you've followed their track record you'd agree with me in saying that no one who ever loved those games ever used the AI templates. You get the most out of the game by micromanaging your squadmates. Or else they wouldn't put a pause feature in the game.[/QUOTE]

I gave it another shot (on medium). I left Redcliffe incomplete and am deep in the nomadic elf quest. It hasn't been easy, but I haven't hit any wall either -- a good balance. I think maybe the Redcliffe mission is just harder -- which is odd as the game kind of steers you there.

I use the mage chick's freeze spell a whole lot now, and have the other Warden and the dog in my party. Seems to be working okay. I don't like having to manually pick who each character will attack in each battle (ganging up on one enemy to thin the herd), but it seems like I have to do it. I much prefer KOTOR's battle system; it didn't require as much hand-holding if I remember.

[quote name='drunknmunkys']Not to be snarky, but...how often do you play rpgs?

If you didn't know that the guy wouldn't attack on defensive I'm guessing this isn't a genre you play ever day, because that's a common setting - don't attack unless you're attacked. I'd put it on easy and read some faqs until you get the hang of it. It'll make the entire experience more enjoyable.

^that wasn't snarky, I promise[/QUOTE]
May not have been "snarky," but you definitely came off as insulting. You're not helping but rather talking down to me like I'm a dumb-ass. I assure you I'm not, nor am I a child or a newb.

"Defensive," to me, means defending others. I assumed he would guard the weaker characters like mages and rogues -- not just stand there and do nothing.
 
I'd recommend doing the broken circle quest first to get the healing party member - that should make the rest of the game smoother as you will now have a dedicated "cleric"
 
So after several unsuccessful attempts I finally
took down that bitch Flemeth
. I'm having a problem though. I'm unable to get Morrigan to teach the Shapeshifter specialization (not to my rogue, to Wynne). I already had her at 100 approval and she wouldn't do it, so I assumed finishing her personal quest would do the trick. No dice. Is this a known glitch or will she just not teach it unless your PC is a mage?
 
I just checked on gamefaqs and the rumor is that there is a bug with Morrigan and she only teaches it before you gain approval. Just buy the book if you want shapeshifter.
 
[quote name='Logg']I am about 26 hours in and I love this game. Between this and CoD 6 I don't need anything else for a long time.[/QUOTE]

LOL

resident evil 20
 
[quote name='wildcpac']I just checked on gamefaqs and the rumor is that there is a bug with Morrigan and she only teaches it before you gain approval. Just buy the book if you want shapeshifter.[/QUOTE]

Thanks, that's what I'll do.
 
This Witherfang quest is a fun one! There was a part where in this random room you find a phlatric (terribly misspelled) that as soon as you attempt to pick it up it shatters in your hands and this badass monster comes out. He killed me numerous times, I had to walk away. I wish I had a healer!
 
[quote name='Nealocus123']This Witherfang quest is a fun one! There was a part where in this random room you find a phlatric (terribly misspelled) that as soon as you attempt to pick it up it shatters in your hands and this badass monster comes out. He killed me numerous times, I had to walk away. I wish I had a healer![/QUOTE]

There are six of those vials I believe. I haven't found them all yet, but I remember for sure there are two in
The Circle Tower and the Royal Palace in the Dwarven city (not even going to try to spell it from memory)

My favorite accomplishments so far are killing
Flemeth and the optional dragon on the mountain before you get to the Urn.
The animation when you finish them off is awesome.
 
Could you get all 4 endings in one playthrough if you manage your saves properly? It seems possible from reading the guide as there's two key decision points that if played properly (and reverting back to the first key decision after getting the first 3 endings) you could get all 4 endings.

I was curious if the game wouldn't give you credit if you did it that way, or do you have to get the 4 endings each with seperate characters? Thanks in advance.
 
[quote name='MSUHitman']Could you get all 4 endings in one playthrough if you manage your saves properly? It seems possible from reading the guide as there's two key decision points that if played properly (and reverting back to the first key decision after getting the first 3 endings) you could get all 4 endings.

I was curious if the game wouldn't give you credit if you did it that way, or do you have to get the 4 endings each with seperate characters? Thanks in advance.[/QUOTE]

I'm not sure, actually, but I imagine its doable depending on how far back you save. That said, if the reason you're asking is achievements, I'm pretty sure the game will require 3 playthroughs to get 1000/1000 only because of the "reach level 20" as each class ones. Other than that, the only other achievement I think which you couldn't get by managing saves are the ones for romance with Morrigan/Alistair, because they'd have to be played with different gender characters. Also the Origin achievements obviously, but you don't have to play the full way through for that.

I plan to do 3 full playthroughs at least, one with each class, and then clean up the remaining Origin stories.
 
[quote name='bigdaddybruce44']Oh, man, I can already tell after just a few minutes that I am gonna sink insane amounts of time into this one. BioWare never lets me down.[/QUOTE]

It only gets more addictive as you dive deeper in. I'm so hooked in this game that I'm actually feeling a twinge of regret that I won't get to play it for a week even though that week will be spent on vacation.

And you hit the nail on the head, BioWare will never let you down. It's always staggering to me to look at all the games they've developed and realize that they've really never made a single bad game. That's amazing.
 
[quote name='bvharris']My favorite accomplishments so far are killing
Flemeth and the optional dragon on the mountain before you get to the Urn.
The animation when you finish them off is awesome.[/QUOTE]

That indeed is an awesome animation.
 
This is my first Bioware game and I must say I love it! I love it so much that I spent 20 minutes talking about it on my podcast and it's not a video game podcast. Having not played a real time RPG or a Bioware game before it took me awhile to get the hang of it. I still think it's a bit too hard though.

For all you who are like me and find the game difficult, I found a way to "cheat" the game. I don't know if anyone's mentioned this but you have to get the Earthquake spell and with it you can scout into rooms and see the enemies. You can cast it outside of battle so I like to cast it then rush it and kick some ass.

I'm only a casual gamer these days but I may have to play this 2 or 3 more times.
 
[quote name='Hellsfire']This is my first Bioware game and I must say I love it! I love it so much that I spent 20 minutes talking about it on my podcast and it's not a video game podcast. Having not played a real time RPG or a Bioware game before it took me awhile to get the hang of it. I still think it's a bit too hard though.

For all you who are like me and find the game difficult, I found a way to "cheat" the game. I don't know if anyone's mentioned this but you have to get the Earthquake spell and with it you can scout into rooms and see the enemies. You can cast it outside of battle so I like to cast it then rush it and kick some ass.

I'm only a casual gamer these days but I may have to play this 2 or 3 more times.[/QUOTE]

If you just want to play through it and enjoy the story, etc there's no shame in playing on Casual. I tried it out for a few minutes and it's FAR easier, and doesn't really require you to micro-manage the way that the higher difficulties do. If you're not used to Bioware games or the genre in general it might make it a bit more manageable until you get the hang of it. There are no difficulty-based achievements either, so there's no penalty whatsoever for ramping it down.
 
WhooopppIIIIEEE! My CE finally shipped from EAstore.com. Only ordered in on 11/1, made 3 calls and 3 emails to customer service to finally get them to ship it.

Glad I broke down and bought the regular ed. a week and a half ago. The games fun.
 
[quote name='MSUHitman']Could you get all 4 endings in one playthrough if you manage your saves properly? It seems possible from reading the guide as there's two key decision points that if played properly (and reverting back to the first key decision after getting the first 3 endings) you could get all 4 endings.

I was curious if the game wouldn't give you credit if you did it that way, or do you have to get the 4 endings each with seperate characters? Thanks in advance.[/QUOTE]You can do it in one play through. Just make sure you have a save file right before you enter the actual
"Landsmeet" quest (takes place in the royal palace where all the nobles are gathered)
. From there you should be able to just reload that file three other times for the other endings.

After seeing the ending, I hate to wonder what percentage of the DLC was actually in the original game. From what I can gather, EA is going to nickle and dime everyone up the ass.:bomb:

I can't believe I actually spent 92 hours on my first play through and I think half the time was spent in the menus micromanaging everything. Overall, the game was still a bit easy even on hard. Maybe it was due to the fact that Shale owns everything in the game with the right set-up. Just have Shale activate the Stone Heart ability, equip Brilliant Nature Crystals (the green ones) and the golem never falls in battle. It was funny to see Shale regenerate health faster than the damage output by the
Archdemon
. I was shocked when I realized that and just watched him fight the rest of the time. I'd suggest anyone who doesn't have Shale in their main party to try the golem out. It's beyond versatile since it can be your Tank, Melee DPS, Ranged DPS, or Support Aura.
 
Wow, just, wow. I'm about to send off my disc to goozex for the full 1000+200 bonus they are offering. I'm just disappointed with this version. I picked up the collector's edition so I'll keep the case and stuff for when I get the pc version and just keep my discs in the tin case. PC version price is dropping nicely.

I pretty much feel that the Eurogamer review most accurately reflects my opinions on the 360 version.
 
[quote name='kamui34']Anyone got templates for the combat tactics?[/QUOTE]
Oi. Here's a tactic for ya: spam the pause button an' ignore all that AI fluff. You'll be glad Alistair didn't use up his shield bash at the beginning of the fight when the spider uses overwhelm on Morrigan, yeah?
 
I have no issues with the 360 version, I'd much rather play this type of game on my couch with a 50" tv than cramped in front of a PC with a 20" monitor.
 
[quote name='daschrier']I have no issues with the 360 version, I'd much rather play this type of game on my couch with a 50" tv than cramped in front of a PC with a 20" monitor.[/QUOTE]

Text is too small sitting 4 feet away. Mini-map is awfully small just as bad as the original KOTOR.
 
[quote name='daschrier']I have no issues with the 360 version, I'd much rather play this type of game on my couch with a 50" tv than cramped in front of a PC with a 20" monitor.[/QUOTE]

Ditto.
 
Hey, Im not sure if its been asked, but anyone else having issues entering their DLC code on the 360?
My code is only 20 characters while the 360 requires 25. Anyone know? Might have been discussed, but havent had the time to read through 15 pages.

EDIT:
Figured it out. Stupid how they have 2 different screens to input codes.
 
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[quote name='bigdaddybruce44']Redeem the code via the game's main menu.[/QUOTE]

Thanks. But I was getting confused because even in the main menu, when you select the Shale DLC, and it gives you the option to buy or redeem code, the code is the 25 character XBL code. I didnt notice till now that at the bottom you hit Y to enter the code included with the game. As I stated in my edit, stupid. Id hate on the signing up for that EA account more if I didnt get some good swag from making an account earlier and playing the flash game for some free loot.
 
im stuck at the kitty part of the shale dlc, i cant finish the puzzle, but i also dont want to kill the kid. anyone know a site that shows the correct movement of tile to get past it.
 
Playing this game for more than an hour or two definitely strains my eyeballs, and I have a 30 inch HDTV.

I know there's not much the devs can do about this with the amount of dialogue and text in the game, but still...
 
[quote name='thisjustanother']im stuck at the kitty part of the shale dlc, i cant finish the puzzle, but i also dont want to kill the kid. anyone know a site that shows the correct movement of tile to get past it.[/QUOTE]
'Fraid not. But... it's really not all that hard. I don't see anything about it on GameFAQs or the DA Wiki, either. I'll let'cha know if I find anything or do it again.
 
[quote name='erectiontown']i can't stop playing this game[/QUOTE]

I know.. I'm the same way. I really want not to do household stuff, but the wife will kill me if she comes home and I have a controller in my hand.
 
I'm with you guys. It's definitely one of those..."I'll stop after I check out this one more thing over here.....oh, then that one thing over there." and next thing you know, two hours have gone by. Love it!
 
Just finished my first playthrough, ready to start on #2. I played through as a female human noble rogue, and got all possible single playthrough achievements with the exception of the damage one, simply because I wasn't focusing on it. I'll get it with my mage or warrior. Also only got 1 of 4 endings for reasons that'll be clear to anyone who finished it, but I'll get the other 3 next time.

One of the best games I've played in years, can't wait to dive in again.
 
I don't think I'll play through again right away -- despite the multiple beginnings/endings. I'm 45 hours in, and not anywhere near being done. When I play these huge games, no matter how much I love them, when I'm done I just want to move on. It was like that with both Oblivion and Fallout 3 -- both of which I sunk 100+ hours into.

Mass Effect, on the other hand, took about 40 hours to beat. Then I instantly started back up.
 
I loved this game, but the game glitched when you dress up as a guard, and I lost all my equipment on Alistar so I can't even beat a fight, cause he gets like one shotted. One day I will start all over I guess but it really ruined my day.
 
Anyone manage to get the Warden Tower Shield drop from Sophia in the Warden's Keep DLC?

Right now I killed Sophia more than 60 times already, I am really unlucky or something.

Edit: Alright got if after 20 more tries.
 
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